Alabama Football: Why Crimson Tide Will Be Back in Title Game Next Year

The Alabama Crimson Tide claimed their 14th national championship with a 21-0 victory over LSU, so what will it take to return for a chance at No. 15?

With just about a week left for underclassmen to declare for the NFL draft, we can start to take a look at what the 2012-13 Alabama Crimson Tide will look like.

Let’s just say, it could be special. 

Strong Recruiting Class

According to both Scout.com and Rivals.com ,the Alabama Crimson Tide boast the nation’s top recruiting class.

In total, Nick Saban has compiled 27 commitments, including 16 recruits that grade at four stars or higher.

With a lot of talent departing for the NFL—especially on defense—Nick Saban’s strong showing along the recruiting trail will help alleviate some of the blow.

Safety Landon Collins and middle linebacker Reggie Ragland headline their recruiting class, and both will come in to try and anchor the defense from day one. 

The Rise of A.J. McCarron

We’ve all had our doubts about A.J. McCarron’s ability to adequately run the Alabama Crimson Tide, and at times he’s been bad, but hopefully, his performance in the BCS National Championship game is a sign of good things to come.

In his sophomore season, McCarron put up more than serviceable numbers. He threw for over 2,600 yards, and his 16 touchdowns against only five interceptions show he’s capable of protecting the football.

He needs to become better in big games; there’s no doubt about that, but I’m confident as he gets another year under his belt that his consistency and confidence with both improve.

McCarron is a star; he’ll use next season to prove it to us. 

Still Have Nick Saban

A Nick Saban-coached team automatically has a leg up on 99 percent of all other teams in the nation.

The Alabama head coach is fresh off of his second BCS championship in three years and will look to return for his fourth title in 2012.

Saban is a jack of his trade. After Alabama lost to LSU on November 5, everyone began preparing for the rematch and began to wonder how Alabama would attack LSU the second time.

Simply put, Coach Saban made every necessary adjustment from the first game and completely shut down LSU’s option attack and made Jordan Jefferson look elementary at best.

That’s what Nick Saban does, and he’ll continue doing it for years to come. 

Schedule Has Potential

One of the biggest knocks on Alabama’s championship run was that they didn’t have to play a championship schedule.

Now while that may be true, competing through the rigors of an SEC schedule deserves to be commended.

Next season, the Tide’s schedule is more difficult. They still will face Arkansas and LSU on the road, and in maybe one of the most intriguing games of the season, they will face a much-improved Michigan Wolverines at Cowboys Stadium.

No one knows how good Arkansas will be next year with the NFL draft decisions of Tyler Wilson, Tenarius Wright and Knile Davis looming large.

The two battles with LSU and Michigan are the only two real question marks, but both are winnable football games.

If I were to make a judgment call right here and now, I think a split of those two games and an overall record of 11-1 heading into the SEC Championship game is very plausible for this Crimson Tide football team. 

They’re Alabama

Yes, I said it; they’re Alabama.

No one in the country comes out each week with more swagger and attitude than Alabama, and it is quite intimidating.

When other schools take major steps back, Alabama stands firmly planted.

After their 2009-10 national championship, the Crimson Tide faced some roadblocks in the ensuing season, but if you look back, they lost two of their three games by a combined four points to two teams ranked in the top five—including the eventual champions, Auburn.

Nick Saban is will be ready to take on the 2012 season with the team he has because he’s been there before, and I guarantee he won’t allow his Tide to experience any sort of championship hangover.